By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.
MANILA, Philippines – Redefining “force majeure” to let a fugitive senator vote remotely in plenary sessions and in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial is a legal stretch that should not stand, a University of the Philippines (UP) law professor said Friday.
In an interview on DZMM Teleradyo, UP Assistant Professor Michael Tiu Jr. rejected Sen. Robin Padilla’s proposal to amend Senate rules and change the meaning of “force majeure,” which refers to unforeseeable or extraordinary events such as natural disasters.
He argued that the interpretation should not hold simply because it only serves to accommodate a handful of senators.
Even if Padilla’s cited examples—La Niña or the Middle East conflict—were accepted as force majeure, Tiu said such events would have to affect all Filipinos, and any accommodation made should extend to everyone, not just those in the Senate.
